Car accident in Orneville kills one, leaves one in serious condition

Editor’s note: A story about the motor vehicle death of Wayne Turcotte incorrectly stated that Turcotte’s wife had been dropped off beside the road before the accident. It was not Turcotte’s wife. In addition, Turcotte is from Bradford, not LaGrange. The erroneous information was provided by police.

ORNEVILLE, Maine — The vehicle a LaGrange man was riding in when he was killed Friday night flipped end over end several times, according to police.

Wayne Turcotte, 24, who is believed to have been the driver of the 1999 Volkswagen car that crashed on Lyford Road, was ejected from the vehicle and died at the scene, Investigator Allen Emerson of the Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Department said Saturday morning.

A passenger in the vehicle, Shane Stone, 24, of Orneville, who also was ejected, was taken by ambulance to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor. He suffered serious head injuries, Emerson said.

A nursing supervisor said Stone was in serious condition Sunday night.

Just before the 8 p.m. accident, Turcotte apparently had a domestic confrontation with his wife, whose name was not available Saturday, Emerson said. The wife, who also had been a passenger in the vehicle, said that after the confrontation, Wayne Turcotte had dropped her off at the side of the road. She told police her husband had been at the wheel at that time. The accident occurred a few minutes later near the Bradford line.

Emerson said the vehicle had been southbound toward Bradford when the driver lost control on a corner and the vehicle flipped over several times.

“I wouldn’t even guess how many times they rolled end to end and over and over,” Emerson said. “It was a long accident scene from the point where they started losing control and where they ended.”

Neither Turcotte nor Stone was wearing a seat belt, he said. The vehicle was demolished.

Emerson said he believed both speed and alcohol were factors in the crash.

The investigation is continuing to determine whether in fact Turcotte was driving the vehicle when it crashed, Emerson said. He expected Turcotte’s body would be taken to the state medical examiner’s office on Saturday.

Assisting Emerson and other deputies at the scene, were the Maine State Police, the Milo Fire Department, Three Rivers Ambulance and Mayo Regional Ambulance.